AI's Got Me by the Balls [7] Just Not Our Day
Speaking of setbacks, I'd been set back on writing this up for quite a while and it bummed me out quite a bit. That might also be a bit why this part is shorter than I'd have liked but, I hope you all enjoy it none the less. Also, I know I mentioned a potential **"bad ending"** being in this one but, as where I ended it didn't really fit that (and that this was an excellent place to end it where I can really go in on the next part), I've planned it to be a part of the next chapter. Sorry for any inconvenience. Hope you enjoy!
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\> You chase after Sheriff Donnel and Guinevere who ran further into the underground tunnels just a couple minutes ahead of you.
The three of you follow the tunnel to an iron gate. Yvette walks up to it and looks over her shoulder at you and Neimi, "This is the gate to the mines." She tells you.
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\> You say "Do you think that the Ebony Claw Syndicate has made their base somewhere as obvious as the mines? Wouldn't you have found them by now if that was the case?"
"I'm sure the EC has many things up their sleeve to hide their base, like magic and that they're probably covering other options, let's get through the iron gate before we're spotted."
You nod, "True, plus it looks like this gate hasn't seen much use in several years. Perhaps they're in a very deep reach of the cave?" you say as you and Neimi approach the gate, which is oddly hot to the touch.
You protect your hand by cloaking it in a shroud of shadow as you force open the gate, keeping your wits about you as you listen for any traps clicking and look around for any potential ambushers. The three of you step over a few rusted bars and walk into the true darkness of the mines.
Yvette lifts up a lantern that sat on a box nearby, lighting up the area. "Alright don't lose sight of me and don't stray too far, I don't fancy heading into these caves alone," she says as the three of you walk through the mine complex.
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\> You offer to lead with the lantern, you would hate for anyone to get hurt and you're the best fighter here.
You shake your head and take the lantern from Yvette, "I'm the best choice to lead, I'll hold the lantern to light the way." You assure her as you begin to walk.
Yvette nods, "Probably for the best, I trust you."
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\> You continue following the caves, looking for any signs of recent footprints. "Guinevere and the Sheriff had to have come this way, surely they aren't that far up ahead."
You walk for a while, still not seeing any sign of Ebony Claw or the Sheriff. "We'll follow this cave for a while longer just to be sure."
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\> You hear a faint humming sound.
You stop walking. "Do you hear that?" you whisper to the others.
Yvette stops and listens, "I think I hear it too."
"What is it?" Neimi asks quietly.
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\> You say "I'm not sure but, it sounds like it's coming from this way. Come on."
Yvette and Neimi follow as you turn off the lantern, allowing just enough light to guide your way forward.
Soon you find yourself staring down a long flight of stairs, going down.
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\> You start to follow the stairs down, "Just how the hell far down are we now? Are the Ebony Claw trying to build a tunnel through the earth?" you jest, though curious why they've gone to such lengths to be this deep underground.
You continue to descend, down another flight of stairs, down another path, down... you lose count after the hundredth stair.
The stairs eventually end and you find yourself in a large open room with several doors along the far wall. The room is dimly illuminated, and you see several sets of shackles on the floor.
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\> You approach the center of the room, making sure to keep your eyes and ears open so as to not be ambushed.
You slowly walk through the room, the hilt of your dagger in your hand, though you keep it sheathed so as to not alert anyone in here. After checking each door and finding them empty, you move back to the center of the room.
You finally stop and look around, listening carefully, and then you sense it... an enemy approaches.
You ready your dagger only to have your arm grabbed from behind, frozen in place.
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\> You look to see who is attempting to assail you.
You turn your head slightly and see a pair of pale eyes looking back at you from the dark of the hood. You see a tall female figure step from the shadows.
"Tch. And just who might you be?" you ask the figure, struggling to free your arm, though it seems to be held in place. It almost reminds you of Helena's magic.
"My real name isn't important. You may call me the 'Matriarch', if you wish. And you're the Bane of Holgard."
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\> You say "Excuse me? The what?"
"The Bane of Holgard. So named by the common folk. A fitting name, no?"
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\> You say "I think you're confusing me with someone else."
The figure begins to laugh, a sound that reminds you of someone you know.
"I don't think so, little one. I know who you are. You're the one that's destroying the Ebony Claw Syndicate."
Your eyes widen in surprise, just what did this 'Matriarch' know and what was she trying to accomplish? You breathe out slowly, smirking as you keep your cool. "Oh? So what if I am?"
The hooded figure's eyes narrow and she raises an eyebrow, her smirk turning into a frown. "So what if you are? I'd say you're doing a good job, wouldn't you?" the Matriarch says, her voice stern and unfriendly.
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\> You say "Yeah, I'm kind of a badass like that."
"Hmph," the Matriarch nods. "So you claim. This'll be over faster if you just tell me what I want to know. Why are you fighting the Ebony Claw Syndicate?"
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\> You say "Let me guess, you're one of their lap dogs? Maybe you're one of the bosses. Is that supposed to scare me?"
The woman laughs again. "Oh, we're not that organized. The Syndicate has many members, but nothing so base as 'bosses'. I'd say we're more of a... unifier."
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\> You taunt her, smirking as you do. "Unifier, huh? Is that what you call it? You're just trying to unify the land under your rule, you're pretty basic, honestly." Your voice is dripping with contempt and sarcasm.
The woman's smile disappears as she raises her eyebrow once more. "Basic? Is that what you consider me? And what do you consider yourself?"
You grin. "I'm the guy that's going to bring you and all this Ebony Claw nonsense to the ground."
The woman snorts. "You think you can bring the Syndicate down? You've got a lot of confidence for someone so young."
"You said it yourself. I've been kicking ass all over Holgard and then some," you smirk.
"So be it," she says, not at all fazed by your claim. She tilts her head to the side, studying you. "I don't doubt your skill. Although... I'm not sure I believe this whole savior act. I think you're just a criminal doing a favor for your buddies."
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\> You say "You're the one who ambushed me and called me the Bane of Holgard. Which still doesn't make any sense to me, wouldn't it be more accurate for you to call me the Hero of Holgard or something like that?"
"Perhaps. But my point is, you don't seem particularly heroic."
"Yeah, I never saw it much myself but, everyone keeps depending on me and telling me I'm the chosen one or whatever. It starts to have a ring to it after a while."
"Hah, a chosen one? I like it." The woman smirks, then her face becomes dark and serious. "But you're still an asshole."
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\> You say "Whoa now. Where did that come from?"
"Just an asshole that needs a good beating. Allow me to show you what we do to dirty assholes," she says with a smirk, stepping up to you with intent in her eyes. "The Bane of Holgard, they said. You don't seem like much to me."
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\> You say "Why do you keep calling me that?"
"Why do you think? You've made your presence known. You want to be noticed? Well, you've gotten our attention. That's why I'm here." She reaches her hand up, smiling down at you before bringing it down in a stinging slap across your cheek. "Oh and, I guess you were wanting me to acknowledge you as the Bane of Shadows, weren't you?"
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\> You stare at her in disbelief, you didn't think anyone else knew about the Shadow Realm and your newfound powers.
She smirks again, then says, "Well, now that you've had your moment of recognition, we can get to the main event. Oh, this should be fun!" before bringing the back of her hand across your face, stinging it quite painfully.
You notice Yvette and Neimi have been unconscious, slumped against the wall to your right. You focus, struggling with all your strength against the pale-eyed hooded figure behind you. The magical binding its got you trapped with seems unbreakable. You curse under your breath.
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\> You say "Fine. Then I guess that means I can stop holding back, huh?"
Her eyes narrow, and she says in a frosty tone, "I've no idea what you're talking about." She brings her hand back, and you feel her grab your head tightly.
She draws her hand back, this time balling it up into a fist before punching you square in the face. You hear a crunching sound as her knuckles pound into the bridge of your nose, you hope it isn't broken as you narrow your eyes. Suddenly, your body burns up with black flames. The cultist behind you seems mute but feeling him back off means you've definitely hurt him. "Such a shame. I was hoping he'd scream," you taunt as you reach back and immolate the man in black flames. He writhes in pain and agony as he collapses to the ground, you note that it isn't as satisfying when he doesn't scream, curling up in horrible fetal position where he finally ceases moving. "One down," You hear a female chuckle.
"If that was your best shot, you'll need to do better than that!" Suddenly you hear a thunderous crack as you feel an ungodly pain in your gut and lower abdomen, pain exploding from your groin as you turn to see a boot buried deep in your balls.
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\> You follow the leg up with your eyes, seeing that it is attached to the tall female figure known as the Matriarch. She'd kicked you square in the genitals with some kind of magical forcefield surrounding her leg.
You double over in pain, clutching your aching crotch and rolling to your knees. The Matriarch stands over you, one leg raised as a cruel smile graces her face. "Oh, this should be fun." She brings her foot back, letting it fly forward with unnatural speed. You try to dodge, but you don't have the mobility you once did before she slammed her magic armor boot into your nads. A burning pain shoots through your body as you feel the flames around you flicker, just a bit, as if they seemed ready to be blown out. The magically enhanced boot was firmly in place against your aching testicles, though you've been getting abused all your life by Neimi and lately by Yvette and even Helena. You recall your training with Helena. You roar furiously and the black flames roar into a frenzy.
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\> You say "It's time to get serious."
As the Matriarch raises her foot to stomp on your testicles, you breathe deeply and bellow out a roar of pure demonic anger. The flames of the black fire that you exhale surround your entire body and engulf her as well. You smirk as you hear her wail in horror and agony.
"For far too long, I've let you think that you can just do whatever you want. But I think it's my turn to ask some burning questions of my own!" you spit as you reach out to grip her wrist, yanking her toward you as the flames sear her flesh with a sickening sizzle. The Matriarch howls but keeps an even keel as she sees the black flame crawling up her arm; you're shocked when you see her have the wherewithal to suddenly cut her arm off at the elbow and jump away from you.
The black flames reduce the arm to ash as you look at her with anger and malice. You dash forward at a speed no man could hope to match, but in an instant she's gone as she flits away in through a dimensional door. You curse her under your breath and the flames around your body flare up intensely for a few seconds before you allow them to snuff out, frustrated at this annoying turn of events.
As you slowly allow yourself to calm down and gather yourself, you look over to see Neimi and Yvette starting to come to and you rush over to them.
"Neimi, Yvette! Are you alright? What the hell happened to you guys?" you ask, concerned.
"Oww... My head hurts," Neimi moans.
Yvette rubs her temples, "I think someone blasted us with some sort of magic. I take it, you got the bastards who did this?"
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\> You say "I was confronted by some powerful magic user called the Matriarch but, she got away before I could finish her."
"We'll see her again if we make it out of this," you say grimly.
"Someone actually managed to escape you? That's quite uncharacteristic, Colm," Yvette says with a wry grin.
You shake your head and chuckle, "Well, today's just not been my day. We haven't caught Sheriff Donnel either. Let's focus on one thing at a time."
Nodding, the three of you get up and try to search for a way out of this atrium. It appears to be a prison-like area, with several different rooms with next to nothing in them, all seem like dead ends.
"But how are we going to find our way out?" Neimi asks.
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\> You say "There has to be a secret in one of these rooms, let's split up and try to search the rooms more intently."
"Neimi, take Yvette and search the west wing rooms, I'll try the east," you say.
"Alright," Neimi agrees.
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\> You say "And... Be careful. Yell for me if you need anything."
"Okay, see you soon, Colm," Yvette says, and both she and Neimi head to the respective wings of the immense palace.
Neimi and Yvette search every room over once again, after the third room turns up yet nothing again, Neimi pouts and whines. "Ugh! This is so annoying! I hate this stupid Donnel and his stupid escape!"
"I'm sure we'll find him, just keep your eyes open," Yvette says.
"Oh, I'm keeping them open, you better believe it," Neimi snaps back.
Yvette seemed a bit surprised at Neimi's snappy attitude but, she just figured it was likely due to the frustration. "Tell you what, when we finally catch up to the bastard, I'll let you pop both of his balls if you want, how about that?" Yvette tells Neimi with a smile and a playful smirk.
"You're on!" Neimi smiles back, a bit thankful that this is not turning out to be as bad as she thought it would. She bounces in place just thinking about it she was so excited, her breasts bouncing up and down as she imagined stomping that stupid Sheriff's balls into nothing.
Meanwhile, Colm was nearly finished with the last room when something peculiar sounded out. "Pip pip?" A voice called out, far away but clear as day.
Colm stand, curious, and listen. You hear nothing as the moments pass by but, just as you take a step, you hear it again.
"Pip pip?"
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\> You say "Who goes there?"
"Pip pip?" The voice answers in a cutesy voice.
"I'm here," you say, walking closer into the room.
"Oh, you're in the right place then, mister!"
You walk forward to see a small jar, inside of it is unmistakably a Fae creature. You do not recognize this one but, you know the Fae well enough to know that this was undoubtedly a Faerie.
The jar it self is a clear glass, the Fae creature inside looking around at you with large, green eyes. "Why hello there," it says in a high, squeaky voice.
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\> You say "Hello... What are you doing in there? Why aren't you in the Fae Forest?"
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The little creature tilts its head at you, to which you assume it is confused. "I know much about your kind. Why are you here?" you ask it again.
"I was captured," it squeaks back.
Captured? Interesting. "By who?" you ask.
"By the Ebony Claw."
"What did they intend to do with you?"
"They've already gotten some use out of me. They use my magic, you see. Use it to get to here and from there."
You look at him curiously, wondering what he could be talking about. "You mean, you can transport people with your magic? Can you do it to me and my friends? We're trying to find somebody."
"I can try... You'd probably find it very hard to get back from there though."
"We'll have to take a chance then."
"My magic will take you straight into the lion's den. Are you sure? That's like asking me to kill you and you seem decent enough. I don't want to do that."
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\> You say "Trust me, I'm more than strong enough to fight these Ebony Claw scum. I tell you what, you help me out and I'll free you from that jar."
"You have a deal then. I'm to get you straight into their headquarters and I'll be able to get out of this wretched hole."
"Thank you. I have to find my friends, give me just a minute, okay?"
"Sure thing, mister."
"By the way, what's your name?"
The faerie smiles and flutters around, "Call me Pent."
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\> You nod and leave to go find Yvette and Neimi.
Yvette and Neimi, on the other hand, had found a book that unlocked a secret passageway and had come to find you. You tell them the news and they share theirs with you, it seems you're at an impasse because there are two potential options Donnel could have used to escape.
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\> You say "But Pent can send us straight into the heart of their HQ and we can end this entire thing, maybe even skipping over Donnel in the process."
"It's risky," Yvette says. "And what if Pent's lying? He could very well just lead us into a trap after all."
You shake your head, "I don't think that's the case. He seems like a genuinely good guy."
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\> You say "Neimi? What do you think?"
"It's risky, but it could speed this up. I trust you though."
Yvette seems almost a little hurt by that but, she then looks up at you with wide eyes like she's come up with an idea. "What a minute, what about your powers? Can they help us, in some way?"
You think about it for a moment, you haven't really explored all of your gifts, only relying on them in moments of need during combat. Things have been getting more and more difficult lately, what with ultra durable grunt enemies and ultra strong sorcerer bitches coming at you all the time, you've used them more for combat than anything else. You close your eyes and focus.
Suddenly, you hear a familiar voice calling to you like a guide. "Yes, Colm, now you are starting to truly grasp what it is your powers can really do. You can sense and track people through their shadows. Everyone has a shadow, even in darkness, it is visible to you. No shadow can escape you because you are their master. Focus, you can trace back Donnel and Guinevere's shadows. It will light the way for you to take the correct path."
You open your eyes and immediately find the two shadows that make up Donnel and Guinevere's forms. You smirk to yourself as you feel amazing, you feel incredible, you feel powerful.
"Come on, this way," you say to your two female companions as you head in the direction of Pent.
Neimi and Yvette nod and follow closely behind you. Neimi floating and fluttering through the air as the tiny Fae she was and Yvette walking like a human with a purpose.
You burst into the room, Pent's tiny little body spins around in a hurry as he looks at you, frightened. "Oh Gods! You scared me, Colm!"
"Tell me, Pent. Where will your magic take me?"
"To the heart of Ebony Claws HQ, like I said!"
"Then why has Donnel and Guinevere not come into this room?"
Pent looks at you, confused and blinking. "Uhh...?"
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\> You say "Quit lying to me, Pent, you swine! Where were you trying to teleport me?"
"I... I don't know!" Pent says with a quiver in his voice, his eyes widening and his gaze looking down at the floor.
"Look, I'm not a real Fae. I was created by the Ebony Claw, they are trying to weaponize Fae magic. It seems they've found a way to harness magic from the Fae and imprint it into people, the process also turns those into tiny, winged humans. They haven't perfected it, it seems because they want the power and strength of larger races with the magical prowess of the Fae, that's all I know, I swear! I'm just a reject that gets studied day in and day out, stuck in this godforsaken jar with nothing to look forward to other than hoping one day someone might come let me out!"
The story seems to make Neimi uneasy and you aren't exactly comfortable with the idea of EC having Fae magic at their disposal either. You glare at the man before sighing, "Why didn't you just tell me the truth from the start? Now, I can't even know if I can trust you."
Pent is silent, as even he seems to not know how to respond. You sigh again and then turn to your companions.
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\> You say "Should we free him or put him out of his misery?"
"I think you should free him..." Yvette says, looking at you nervously.
"He's an abomination. A disgrace. A reminder of the fact people are using my kind as weapons. I say kill him, Colm." Neimi says, crossing her arms over her chest.
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\> You think about it for a moment, you wouldn't feel right killing him if he had been honest and straightforward from the start but then again he seems to have a tortured life as it is so, would killing him be a mercy?
You sigh and rub your temples, before looking to Neimi, then Yvette. "I'm sorry. You know I hate having to kill people as it is, let's go get Donnel. That son of a bitch is the real reason we're here and I think it's time somebody paid for all the shit that's gone down today. You turn and shatter the jar, glaring at Pent as he flutters around, terrified.
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\> You say "You will wait until we've been gone for five minutes before leaving, understand? If you try anything, I'll kill you before you finish the thought."
"Yes! Yes! OK!" Pent says, terrified.
You nod, and turn from him, leaving the room behind you. You follow the shadows from before down the correct path this time, taking you to the secret hideaway passage Neimi and Yvette had found before.
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\> You say "Sorry I doubted you, Yvette and sorry I didn't kill Pent, Neimi."
"No worries, Colm. I know you had your reasons," Yvette smiles.
"Let's just get Donnel. That's all that matters now," Neimi says dismissively, waving a hand.
You nod, turning and walking down the passage.
"And don't forget, you get to smash his balls," Yvette says to Neimi to try and cheer her up.
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\> You head down the secret passageway, following the spectral shadows of Donnel and Guinevere.
You walk down the passageway, creeping slowly. You hear the soft, light thrumming of something below you. You can only assume it's the sound of the muffled footfall of the HQ. You chase the shadows for what seems like an eternity before you spot two figures in the distance. The shadows slowly fade into the figures and you realize what that could only mean. Donnel and Guinevere. You finally caught up to them, as it seems they've stopped to rest at this small pass way. You focus your senses and see their shadows like glowing specters sharing the same space as them. You also notice several other specters flaring to life as you realize that this isn't just a pass way, it's a heavily fortified and protected gateway.
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\> You say "Huh, it seems they've stopped off to rest here. And best of all, they led us right to the HQ, this must be some kind of fort protecting the path into the HQ, judging by the amount of manpower they've got in there."
Yvette and Neimi look to one another before looking at you. They realize that this means there's going to be a huge brawl. Yvette breathes in and out slowly, calming herself before smirking at you.
"Just say the word. I'm ready when you are."
Neimi nods, clutching onto Yvette's shoulder as she almost looks a little sullen. You assume it's because this is going to be yet another fight where she can't really do much to help.
You reach out and pat her head, comforting her with a smile.
"Don't sweat it. This will be over soon and it'll just be us together in a nice hotel again."